Defy the Rules of Tying
Here at Modern Tie, we always have innovation and invention in mind. Growing up, while most of our peers were fantasizing about being a famous pop star, playing in the NFL, or becoming President of the United States, we were dreaming about being inventors.
Beginning
Our dreams started to become a reality in 2017 when my brothers and I flew to the Synergy Global Forum in New York City. The conference was all about disrupting current markets with new and innovative ideas. Attendees at the conference included Gary Vaynerchuk, Richard Branson, Guy Kawasaki, and many other superhuman innovators. While we were there, we had the privilege of hearing from Gary Vaynerchuk, and something he said really stuck with us.
“Look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself, what do I want to do everyday for the rest of my life? Do that.” – Gary Vaynerchuk
I know it sounds cliche to talk about a life altering moment, but this was exactly that. We thought, could it really be that simple? Is finding your passion and following it really all it takes? Ever since, we have made it our mission to put this idea to the test, and we have found it to be true. Not one second since New York have we doubted that we would be innovators.
Product Inspiration
In 2017 our family was set to attend an awards dinner in Salt Lake City, Utah for their companyGet Away Today Vacations, one of the top providers of tourism to Southern California and Disneyland. As I routinely got dressed in my suit and tie, I reached for my watch, slipped it over my wrist, and held it up to snap it closed. As I turned my head and looked in the mirror, everything seemed to start moving in slow motion. It was as if someone from Hollywood yelled “ROLLING” and queued the explosions as Keanu Reeves bent backwards narrowly avoiding bullet after bullet. A lightning bolt had struck my mind and engraved a road map as to what our first invention HAD to be.I excitedly ran to tell my wife about my epiphany. We were going to change the Tie Industry!
Untying the Tie
Like most inventions, there were a lot of prototypes before the final product was created. Initially, I kept a drawer full of all kinds of crazy materials at my house. Metal hangers, scraps of cardboard, a wax candle that I could easily shape, and about 20 of my kids’ toys, including some Pokémon cards. It felt as though I was the Picasso of junk. To me, it was a lab for developing a groundbreaking invention that was going to change an industry. To my wife, it was one less usable drawer for storage. At my brother’s house, who conveniently lived directly behind me, it was the same thing. All of the odds and ends we could get our hands on were being manipulated into the shape of a knot. Our desire was to redesign the functionality of the classic tie while staying true to the new look we envisioned. We started by spending a solid month wearing the traditional tie everyday. Some days we would leave the knot tied and just slip it over our heads, other days we would re-tie it completely with every kind of knot imaginable, some even taking us close to an hour to figure out. As this studying persisted some of the annoyances began to surface. The biggest one was tying the perfect knot with the perfect length in a timely manner. So many times we found that our ties were coming out slightly too short, or slightly too long. It was rare that we were lucky enough to get it right on the first try. This is when we decided that not only did we want to change the look of the tie, we also wanted to create a better functioning tie that fit in to our busy lifestyles. After a few weeks, we had finally figured it out!
Final Masterpiece
After two years of obsession and hundreds of prototypes, we are excited to bring Modern Tie into the world. Early in the creation process we put the letters "T . I . E ." above our work space. It stands for Transform, Innovate, and Evolve. We wouldn't settle for anything less than the best when creating this product and this acronym served as a steady reminder that we could do just that. The end result became something so much more than just a great looking tie. This newly patented technology became something that allows the wearer style, comfort, and speed. while eliminating the tying process, and uncomfortable material around the neck. WE HOPE YOU LOVE MODERN TIE AS MUCH AS WE DO!